[H] Computer and SC2

Saracen

United States5139 Posts

March 19 2010 09:42 GMT

I am trying to run SC2 on a Sager laptop I got in the summer of '08. I'm pretty sure my specs are fine, yet my computer keeps dying ~20 minutes into a game with the graphics setting set to low. Is it because of an inadequate cooling system or what? More importantly, how do I fix the problem?

System Specs:
OPERATING SYSTEM: WINDOWS 2.6.0.6002 (SP 2)
CPU TYPE: INTEL(R) CORE(TM)2 DUO CPU T9300 @ 2.50GHZ
CPU SPEED (GHZ): 2.521
SYSTEM MEMORY (GB):3.998
GRAPHICS CARD MODEL: NVIDIA GEFORCE 8600M GT GRAPHICS CARD DRIVER: NVD3DUM.DLL
DESKTOP RESOLUTION: 1280X720
HARD DISK SIZE (GB): 186.309
HARD DISK FREE SPACE (GB): 88.597

EDIT: I feel really dirty for posting an SC2 blog. Sorry guys!

MrShankly

United Kingdom370 Posts

March 19 2010 09:59 GMT

I have a 8600m GT and it doesnt overheat from sc2 unless i run the game on my bed and forget to put something hard underneath it (to stop the vents getting blocked). So make sure you dont do that. I would upgrade your drivers all to the latest, and check the manufacturers site for upgraded BIOS. Sometimes they are tweaked to change when cooling fans come on etc.

You can also undervolt your cpu using :
http://www.overclock.net/laptops-notebook-computers/308654-undervolt-laptop-guide-intel-c2d-t7500.html

It will work with your processor and undervolting does not reduce performance. If you follow the guide you will find it pretty easy to do and you can potentially lose up to 8+ degrees or something

Hmm not much else i can think of... Is your laptop maybe dirty inside? A buildup of dust could also cause heat problems.

Sorry if i was not much help, but bleh

Good luck!

Saracen

United States5139 Posts

March 19 2010 10:05 GMT

Thanks! Your post seems really helpful.

klizzer

517 Posts

March 19 2010 11:14 GMT

Check the nVidia drivers threads:
http://forums.battle.net/thread.html?topicId=23425378594&sid=5010
though I'm not really sure if that's the issue you have at hand.

I have a much less powerful laptop and I can run SC2 on low-medium on higher resolutions (watching replays though

)

You can try monitoring your RAM & CPU usage while gaming to see what's the issue, though it does seem like overheating. Undervolting might help.

On a side note, I am not particularly liking SC2 so far ;o

DeathSpank

United States1029 Posts

March 19 2010 11:28 GMT

I have the macbook pro with the nvidia 8600m gt and its been running really freaking hot lately (like 90c when gaming) so I'm going to call apple tomorrow to see if they will fix it for free and if not I'm going to build my own cooling pad.

T.O.P.

Hong Kong4685 Posts

March 19 2010 11:39 GMT

I have a 9600 GT (Same thing as 8600 GT, except it produces less heat) and it overheats like mad and causes SC2 to crash. But I fixed it by setting everything to low and adding the lines

frameratecap=30
frameratecapGlue=30

to the text file in documents/SC2/variables.txt

It limits your frame rate to 30 fps.

WhuazGoodJaggah

Lesotho777 Posts

March 19 2010 12:35 GMT

look where the hot air comes out of your notebook, then use a compressed air "gun" to blow back in there to losen the dust "carpet" to get the airblocking dust out of there.

the better and cleaner variation would be to open up the notebook and completely remove any dust.

MrShankly

United Kingdom370 Posts

March 19 2010 14:12 GMT

If your gfx card is still overheating, you can also just set the shaders to low, they seem to be what causes the GPU to heat up the most!

otsukaresama

Japan23 Posts

March 19 2010 17:22 GMT

Laptop for gaming is a big no no. Even on low settings, it's not good for the laptop since it's a chipset.

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